I Love a Challenge!

Nothing gets me motivated more than a challenge. Be it the challenge of learning something new or the deadline of a competition. To keep me on track with my dollhouse completion, I have decided to join the Undersized Urbanite competition. There are categories for both novice and experienced builders. The goal is to complete a room or rooms in miniature by May 12th, 2014 and post the end results to undersized urbanite.com. Since I also really enjoy the chaos of having multiple projects going at once, I have also decided to enter the Hoffman Fabric challenge. This years challenge fabric immediately brought an idea to mind.

I found a great online storefront called Batiks Plus, that allowed me to buy fat quarters of the challenge fabric which means I can get more bang for my buck. I am using this challenge as an opportunity to try some techniques I have never used before. I remembered something I saw in an issue of Soft Dolls and Animals

After a perusal of my fabric stash and art supplies, I realized I needed gesso, modeling paste, and gel medium. Thanks to Dick Blick, they will arrive at my doorstep in a few days. Time to bust out the sewing machine!

A Wealth of Resources

Even though I am not currently in school, it seems that I can't embark on or complete any major projects without conducting a massive amount of research. It could also just be that I like doing research. In regards to my dollhouse project, the Internet has been both a valuable tool and a constant distraction. There is so much out there to read and buy. For basic instructions and tutorials, More Minis is the place to go. This is where I learned how to apply siding. It is so good that I felt confident attempting this on my very first build. eBay and Etsy have provided me with odds and ends needed for construction and decor. One Inch Minis by Kris is a fantastic place to learn how to build just about any piece if furnishing needed to complete a dollhouse. There are even sites like Spoonflower.com where you can design and produce your very own small scale fabric and wallpaper. These are a few of the ones that I have produced for this project.

I even found images from travel sites and old "women's magazines" to use as inspiration.